Did He Serve?

Week 6: #52 Ancestors – Same Name

By Eilene Lyon

When I put together the list of ten men who formed the Blackford Mining Company in 1851, two names made me groan: John K. Anderson and Samuel Jones. At least Anderson had a middle initial. But Samuel Jones, no middle initial? Argh!! How many men must there be with that same name?

At first, I didn’t realize both men are related to me. With luck, they’d both be living in Blackford County in the 1850 census. John was not, but there was a Samuel Jones in Jackson Township, living next door to Benjamin H. Jones (who turned out to be a brother).¹

Assuming he was the right man, I used the information from this census to start a Jones family tree. Ancestry does not do thorough searches when you just insert information into a search box. To maximize the results, you have to put the person you are researching into a family tree. I actually have more than one private research “tree” full of unconnected people.

One Ancestry tree with Sam Jones intrigued me. It didn’t have any attached records, but the tree’s owner appeared to have information (such as infants who died between census years) that must have come from family records. Also in this tree were the names of Samuel’s parents: Thomas Jones and Sarah Ransom. Aha!

I found records to support this conclusion: Sarah Ransom is the sister of my 3^rd great-grandfather, James Ransom.² That meant all her children were first cousins to James’s children, including my 2^nd great-grandfather, Robert Ransom. Samuel Jones and his siblings are my 1^st cousins 4 times removed.

The owner of the tree turned out to be a descendent of Samuel’s younger brother, William G. Jones. She had a transcript of information from William’s family Bible and sent me copies, along with other family material, including photos of Sarah Ransom Jones and William G. Jones and family. But she had no photos or other information about Sam Jones aside from what was in the Bible record.

Fortunately, Sam’s wife and children all had less common names with middle initials. Using them helped me put together a timeline for Sam. Eventually I tracked down a descendant through his daughter, Josephine. This cousin has family photos, including the daguerreotype I shared last year that is almost certainly Sam Jones. She also has the Sam Jones family Bible.

Among all the events I’ve collected for Sam, one stands out, because it may or may not belong to him. Which leaves me with the question: Did “my” Samuel Jones serve the Union during the Civil War?

In the 1860 and 1870 censuses, Sam’s family was living in Moccasin Township, Effingham County, Illinois.³ There appear to be no other Sam Joneses in Effingham County in either census. He purchased property there on July 18, 1861.⁴ Samuel Jones was born April 2, 1824 in Belmont County, Ohio, and would have been 37 years old at that time.⁵

A few weeks later, on August 2, a Samuel Jones of Effingham County enlisted in Company A, 26^th Regiment Illinois Volunteers for 3 years of service. He was discharged for an unknown disability on February 16, 1862.⁶

In July 1863, a Samuel Jones was registered for the Civil War draft in Moccasin Township, Effingham County, but the registrar recorded no information other than names.⁷

I requested the service record for Private Samuel Jones, Co. A, 26^th Illinois from the National Archives, which confirms the information I found earlier at the Family History Library (and later in Ancestry.com). One small detail does not add up, though.

On the muster card for his enlistment on August 2, 1861, the age for Samuel is given as 43, not 37.⁸ It’s important to note that these muster cards are not original sources – they were transcribed from an original roster at a later date, introducing another opportunity for error. Each card for Pvt. Jones has the same signature at the bottom with the title “Copyist.”

Since I cannot find another Samuel Jones fitting this description in Effingham County or even surrounding counties, I suspect the age might be an error. But there is room for doubt. It doesn’t appear that my Samuel Jones ever applied for a pension. Given that he was a prosperous businessman and investor, that is not surprising.

Did he serve? Or not?

 

Update: After writing this post, I did another search on Ancestry and found one other record for Private Samuel Jones, Co A, 26th Illinois. This one states that he was born in 1818 (age 43 at enlistment), born in Pennsylvania, single, farmer, residence in Effingham County, discharged for rheumatism. Clearly not my man! However, I still cannot locate this farmer in the 1860 or 1870 censuses for Effingham County, nor I have found other evidence for him. For now, I must conclude my cousin Sam did NOT serve. https://www.ilsos.gov/isaveterans/civilMusterSearch.do

Feature image: Camp Butler near Springfield, Illinois, where Pvt. Samuel Jones mustered in and trained for service in the Civil War. (Wikimedia Commons)